Reliance Jio to Trai: Free voice and data offer don't violate rules

NEW DELHI: Reliance Jio has backed its free data and voice offers, saying that they did not violate norms that limit promotional offers to 90 days. In response to the telecom regulator seeking clarity on the offers, the Mukesh Ambani-led company is learnt to have said that its new offer cannot be termed as an extension of its inaugural promotional offer.

Jio is learnt to have argued that the tariff plans have multiple components and changing one of them changes the offer, therefore, the Happy New Year plan cannot be seen as an extension of the Welcome offer.

In the first offer issued in September, no option of renewal or payment was given after a user exhausted the 4GB limit, but in the new offer brought out on December 1, both data and the promised speed can be recharged.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) had sought a clarification on Jio’s extension of free call and data offer till March 31, 2017 after the promotional 90-day period expired on December 4. In a December 20 letter, the regulator had also asked why the offer, which gave away free data, should not be seen as predatory.

Jio has been maintaining that its latest offer caps data at 1 GB under fair use policy and was therefore substantiatively different from the Welcome offer where 4GB of free data per day was provided.

In terms of market dominance, Reliance Jio is six per cent of the installations in the country whereas the Competition Commission of India (CCI) norms specify 30% threshold to trigger the `misuse of market dominance' clause.

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